TNAG-2192-FCO40-3129-Hong-Kong-nationality-package-1990 — Page 159

SECRET

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Redacted under FOI Exemption S 27(1)

perception of the Prime Minister's view on the subject;

the Home Secretary would be strongly opposed to any

proposition which amounted to a device to get back into the package the 2 million people who had now been excluded, following discussion

with the Prime Minister;

while fully appreciating the political and presentational

problem identified by the Governor and ourselves, the Home

Secretary would still be concerned that the Prime Minister should not suspect us of seeking to get in excluded categories.

4. As to the size of this additional category, the Governor

expressed the view that it should be at least 2,000 people view is that a figure of 1,000 might be more realistic.

Approved Secondments Scheme

5.

Our

We also discussed with the Home Office the idea of an

alternative Approved Secondments Scheme which did not involve primary legislation. Mr Langdon said he thought that it should be possible to devise such a scheme under which the prize would be an Entry Certificate. The problem was whether such a scheme would be

additional to the 50,000 (in which case there would be the political

problem of having created a "loop hole" a means of getting round

the 50,000 ceiling). If it were not additional, however, there

would be the equally difficult problem that, in the eyes of Captains

of industry, we had diluted the package originally announced by offering a lesser prize than passports to beneficiaries under the

Scheme.

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